The short diagonal

by Karsten Müller
1/17/2017 – Every week ChessBase magazine author and renowned endgame expert Karsten Müller presents a remarkable or particularly instructive endgame in his blog. A click on the diagram opens a larger board. Test your endgame skills, improve and have fun!
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1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.Nf3 e4 4.Ng5 f5 5.Nc3 Be7 6.Nh3 Nf6 7.Bg5 0-0 8.e3 c6 9.Nf4 Na6 10.Be2 Nc7 11.Qb3 Rb8 12.d5 c5 13.h4 h6 14.Bxf6 Bxf6 15.h5 Bd7 16.g3 b6 17.Nb5 Nxb5 18.cxb5 Re8 19.a4 Qc7 20.Bc4 Kh7 21.Qc2 Bc8 22.Rd1 Be5 23.Ne6 Qe7 24.g4 Qf6 25.f4 exf3 26.Qxf5+ Qxf5 27.gxf5 Bxb2 28.Kf2 Re7 29.Kxf3 Bd7 30.Rh2 Be5 31.Ra2 Be8 32.Kg4 Bc3 33.Rc1 Be5 34.Rcc2 Bf7 35.Ra3 Reb7 36.Rca2 Be8 37.Rb3 Kg8 38.a5 bxa5 39.Rxa5 Bd7 40.e4 Be8 41.Be2 Bd7 42.Kf3 a6 43.Rxa6 Bxb5 44.Rxb5 Rxb5 45.Bxb5 Rxb5 46.f6 Rb3+ 47.Kg4 Rg3+ 48.Kh4 gxf6 49.Ra8+ Kf7 50.Ra7+ Kg8 51.Ra8+ Kf7 52.Rf8+ Ke7 53.Rh8 c4 54.Rxh6 Kf7 55.Rh7+ Kg8 56.Rc7 c3 57.h6 Rg1 58.h7+ Kh8 59.Nf8 Rg7 60.Rc8 Rf7 61.Kg4 Kg7 62.Kf5 c2 63.Ne6+ Kxh7 64.Rxc2 Ra7 65.Rc7+ Rxc7 66.Nxc7 Kg7 67.Ke6 Kg6 68.Ne8 Kg5 69.Nxd6 Kf4 70.Nc4 Bb8 71.d6 Kxe4 72.d7 Bc7 73.Nd6+ Kf4 74.Kxf6 Bd8+ 75.Ke6 Kg4 76.Nb7 Bg5 77.Na5 Bd8 78.Nc6 Bc7 79.Ne7 Kh3 80.Ng6 Bd8 81.Kf5 Bc7 82.Nf4+ Kh4 83.Ne6 Ba5 84.Nd4 Bc7 85.Nc6 Bb6 86.Kf6 Bc7 87.Nd4 Kh3 88.Kf5 Bb6 89.Ne6 Ba5 90.Ke4 Kg4 91.Ke5 Bc3+ 92.Nd4 Ba5 93.Kd6 Bb4+ 94.Kd5 Ba5 95.Nc6 Bc7 96.Ke6 Kh4 97.Ne7 Ba5 98.Nf5+ Kg4 99.Nd6 Bc7 100.Nc4 Bd8 101.Nd6 Bc7 102.Ke7 Ba5 103.Nc4 Bc7 104.Ke6 Bd8 105.Ne3+ Kf3 106.Nf5 Kg4 107.Ng7 Bc7 108.Kd5 Ba5 109.Kd6 Bb4+ 110.Ke6 Ba5 111.Kd5 Kg5 112.Ke6 Kg4 113.Ne8 Bd8 114.Nd6 Bc7 In the fight between bishop against knight the stopping diagonal of the bishop should be at least five squares long - otherwise the bishop might be dominated.
White to move and win
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Volkov,S2624Anikonov,D24001–02016A21Rapid GP Russia Final13.1

 

Karsten Müller in ChessBase Magazine

Do you like these lessons? There are plenty more by internationally renowned endgame expert Dr Karsten Müller in ChessBase Magazine, where you will also find openings articles and surveys, tactics, and of course annotations by the world's top grandmasters.

Click to go to the ChessBase Magazine page

Apart from his regular columns and video lectures in ChessBase Magazine there is a whole series of training DVDs by Karsten Müller, which are bestsellers in the ChessBase Shop.

 

ChessBase Magazine #175 (December/January)


 

The editor’s top ten:

1. Mini repertoire against the King's Indian: Vladimir Kramnik annotates his surprise coup (with 6.b3) against Daniele Vocaturo
2. A big point for the USA: Olympiad winner Wesley So analyses his victory over Ian Nepomniachtchi.
3. Trends in the Benko Gambit: why does Black often delay the capture on a6? How should White react? GM Stohl brings you up to date!
4. "Move by Move": together with Simon Williams find out how the young Dutch player Benjamin Bok outplayed top GM Nakamura (interactive video)
5. "Premature Resignation": find out together with Oliver Reeh why in Amonatov-Hansen a last check of the position could have paid dividends.
6. 8 out of 10 and gold on board 1: Daniel King demonstrates one of Baadur Jobava's brilliancies from Baku (video).
7. The positional queen sacrifice: strategy expert Mihail Marin reveals why the sacrifice of the strongest piece is often the best practical solution.
8. Marches with kings: David Navara again discovers a fantastic king march – this time from g1 to h7 – and wins!
9. The Slav with 4.g3: let GM Vidit Santosh Gujrathi explain why big names like Gelfand and Grischuk play this side variation (video).
10. Hypermodern manoeuvre: let Pavel Eljanov show you how to optimise one’s piece play these days: Eljanov - Shirov


 

 

 

Recommendations for your repertoire

Postny: English A33 (recommendation for Black)
1.c4 c5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 e6 6.a3 Bc5 7.Nb3 Bb6

 

 Instead of allowing Hedgehog positions with 7...Be7 8.e4, moving the bishop to b6 leads to quite different types of position (since 8.e4 0-0 9.Be2 can be met with 9...d5!). Evgeny Postny sees Black as having equalised and thinks that 6.a3 will perhaps disappear from practice.

Iotov: Alekhine Defence B02 (of interest for White and Black)
1.e4 Nf6 2.e5 Nd5 3.c4 Nb6 4.c5 Nd5

 

 The Chase Variation is actually considered harmless. But in his article Valentin Iotov shows that with 5.Nc3 e6 6.d4 White can bring about extremely sharp positions. Both sides have the option of leaving the path which transposes to the Alapin Variation (Sicilian).

Krasenkow: Modern Defence B06 (recommendation for Black)
1.e4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.Nc3 c6 4.Bc4 d6

 

 At the heart of Michal Krasenkow’s article there is the continuation 5.Qf3 e6. After it play is of a very forcing character. Black needs to know what he is doing, but if he does he has no difficulties in achieving a level game.

Szabo: Sicilian Defence B76 (recommendation for White)
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Bg7 7.f3 0-0 8.Qd2 Nc6 9.g4 Nxd4 10.Bxd4 Be6

 

 By first playing 9...Nxd4 Black avoids the 9...Be6 10.Nxe6 variation. On the other hand, in the position in the diagram White must not castle long but can play more flexibly. But according to Krisztian Szabo’s analyses, it is not clear whether 9...Nxd4 is better than the alternative.

Neven: French Defence C11 (recommendation for Black)
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Be7 7.Be3 0-0

 

 By choosing this move order Black delays Nb8-c6 and is planning 8...b6 on his next move. Then he no longer has to fear d4xc5 and moreover has ...Ba6 up his sleeve. Knut Neven analyses the variation and also presents ideas for Black after the aggressive 9.h4.

Kosintseva: French Defence C17 (recommendation for White)
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.Bd2

 

 So far the Bogoljubow move 5.Bd2 has been considered really harmless, but the new trend is towards 5...Ne7 6.a3! As Nadezhda Kosintseva convincingly points out, White then has very good chances of an opening advantage.

Papp: French Defence C18 (recommendation for White)
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 Qa5 7.Bd2 Qa4 8.Qg4

 

 Petra Papp has an aggressive plan against the popular variation with 6...Qa5: 8.Qg4 and after Black has protected the g7-pawn the queen does not return to d1 and the c2-pawn is not defended. Black appears to have problems here.

Sumets: Slav Defence D16 (recommendation for Black)
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4 5.a4 e6 6.e3 c5 7.Bxc4 Nc6 8.0-0 cxd4 9.exd4 Be7 10.Qe2 0-0 11.Rd1

 

 The variation with 5...e6 and a subsequent c6-c5 should not be under-estimated. Black may well lose a tempo, but a4 is not necessarily useful. Andrey Sumets cannot see any opening advantage for White.

Ris: Queen’s Gambit Accepted D27 (recommendation for White)
1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 c5 6.0-0 a6 7.Nc3 b5 8.Be2

 

 Putting the bishop on e2 has, above all in the lines with d4xc5 and an early exchange of queens, the advantage that pressure is being exerted on the a6-b5 pawn chain. Robert Ris is very optimistic for White, though he admits that Black gains equality with precise play.

Marin: Slav Schlechter Variation D94 (recommendation for Black)
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e3 g6 5.Nf3 Bg7 6.Be2 0-0 7.0-0 a6

 

 With 7...a6 Black prepares an immediate ...b5, but also ...dxc4 followed by ...b5. Mihail Marin then examines several continuations for White, none of which, however, is suitable for offering White an opening advantage.

Kuzmin: King's Indian Fianchetto E62 (recommendation for Black)
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.g3 0-0 5.Bg2 d6 6.0-0 Nc6 7.Nc3 e5 8.d5 Nb8

 

 This variation was previously played with 8...Ne7, but as Alexey Kuzmin explains in his article, c5 is the ideal square for this knight and it is better reached via b8. Surprisingly, White then has hardly any chance of an opening advantage.

ChessBase Magazine #175 (December/January)

 
Karsten Müller is considered to be one of the greatest endgame experts in the world. His books on the endgame - among them "Fundamentals of Chess Endings", co-authored with Frank Lamprecht, that helped to improve Magnus Carlsen's endgame knowledge - and his endgame columns for the ChessCafe website and the ChessBase Magazine helped to establish and to confirm this reputation. Karsten's Fritztrainer DVDs on the endgame are bestsellers. The mathematician with a PhD lives in Hamburg, and for more than 25 years he has been scoring points for the Hamburger Schachklub (HSK) in the Bundesliga.

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